TO: ALL WEST VIRGINIA ARES MEMBERS (OFFICIAL)
ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE (INFORMATION)
FROM: KEN HARRIS WA8LLM WV SECTION EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED
WV ARES BULLETIN NR 10.07 DATE: February 14, 2010
SUBJECT: LEAVE A MESSAGE
How many times have you been too far away from your telephone, like taking a bath, working in the yard, or doing other things, when the telephone starts ringing? You try to get to the telephone before it quits ringing, only to pick it up, and hear whoever was calling, hang up their telephone, after hearing your answering machine start giving an answer greeting.
I'm sure that everyone with an answering machine knows what I'm talking about. It only takes a few seconds to leave a short message on an answering machine after you hear it give the greeting, and the beep. Just because you might not like talking to an answering machine don't mean you haven't given the person you were calling another gray hair.
To you the telephone call might not have been very important, but the person you were calling doesn't know that. They may wonder for hours who tried to call them, and wonder if the missed telephone call might have been something important. They may think that if it's important the person may call back, but that seldom happens.
Leave a message on the answering machine so the person you are calling won't be worrying about the telephone call they missed. If it's important, then the person being called may try to get back to you as soon as they get the message.
The message you put on the answering machine doesn't have to be very long, just your name, the time, and a short reason why you called. How often have you missed a call, and wished someone had left a message on your answering machine?
(Reprinted, with modifications, of ARES District 3 Bulletin NR 07.10
Ken Harris WA8LLM
Wood County WV
WV ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
WV ARES District 3 Emergency Coordinator